"I'm Fine!": A Guide to Convincing Everyone Around You That, Actually, You're Doing Great.
Listen, before we get into this satirical little humorous jab of an article, let's backtrack a tad. This week, I was genuinely not okay. I got some mystery illness, had too many obligations, and, obviously, had too much schoolwork on top of that. That said, I wasn't exactly ready to deal with all of that this week. Thus, when people asked how I was doing, I was "fine." Maybe, I was even "good." If I was feeling really crazy, I'd sometimes even throw in a "great!"
Here at Blog, we're all about acknowledging your feelings, working through your problems, and a bunch of other stuff like that. However, we (I) also understand that, sometimes, you simply need to buy some time for a little bit before all that ~productive~ stuff happens. So, I made this list of things that have helped me hide my problems and, maybe, will help you too! (and after we will have a team conversation on how to actually work through our problems.)
First off, ask people how they are before they ask about how YOU are. This tactic is critical for anyone trying to mask the fact that they have four papers due in two days and are just now starting to think about them. Asking people how they're doing BEFORE they ask you how you're doing is a great way to find out about what's going on in your friend's life. Additionally, this move keeps the conversation ~looking~ normal even as the beads of sweat start to trickle down your face for the nerves of not using every waking moment to continue cramming. Really, this tactic could even be considered a common decency! Ask people how they are.
Next, say everything while laughing. That way, no one will ever be able to decipher the mess of what's going on internally! They might be able to guess that you're, quite literally, falling apart. However, they'll lack sufficient evidence to back up that claim due to the way you announce your absurd amount of stress with the tone of a chuckle. Most likely, they will give some sort of vague laugh back. Quickly, the situation dissolves into a little laughing session which is nice since it distracts from your problems and brings a slight semblance of joy to your otherwise stressful week!
My last piece of advice to make everyone think you're 'okay' is to carry around ballons or some other peppy shit. When have you ever seen someone stressed while holding balloons? or with a bag of chocolate? Never. You have never seen that*. If you associate yourself with objects that are typically joyful, the public will h a v e to began associating you with joy! This tactic, while arguably the most excessive, is also the most foolproof. So, for all my 24-hour Sci Li basement kids, maybe, just, maybe consider it.
Okay, now that funny, ha-ha article is done, let's just all remember to take care of ourselves. Sleep, eat, exercise (or don't), dedicate yourself to things you love, drop your 5th class, and, most importantly, stop feeling guilty about not being able to handle everything all the time. At the end of the day, we're all students, and we're all, actually, allowed to not be fine all the time.
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